Airtable

The Airtable Plugin can be used to pull data from Airtable into Bubble, as well as update Airtable records from Bubble workflows. The ideal use case for this plugin is to supplement your Bubble application with Airtable data, or vice versa. We don’t recommend using Airtable as your sole database because using your Bubble database will generally be more performant, since it won’t require API calls.

To connect an Airtable Base to Bubble, follow these steps:

Install the Airtable Plugin in the Plugins tab of the editor. Provide your Airtable API Key. To find this key, log into your Airtable account and navigate to https://airtable.com/account. Your API Key can be found here: ​

Click “Add another Base” and fill out the Base Name and ID. To find your Base ID, navigate to https://airtable.com/api and select the Base you want. Once you’re on the Base’s API page, your Base ID can be found here:

There is an option to use a different API Key - this can remain unchecked unless you want to use Bases from multiple Airtable accounts.

Configure your Table information:

Fill out your Table name - it must be an exact match with your Table name in Airtable.

Make sure your Table has a view in Airtable matching the "View name" field in Bubble. The view "Grid view" is filled out, but if you don't have a view with this name, change it accordingly. You can also make this field blank. However, specifying a view allows Bubble to pull data from Airtable in the order it appears in your view. If the view field is left blank, your data will return in a random order in Bubble.

Select the permissions you want to allow for your Table data.

Before initializing your Table, make sure that you have at least one filled-out value in each of your columns in Airtable. When we initialize your fields in Bubble, the Airtable API will not return fields where every row is blank.

Initialize your Table and confirm that the data types have been configured correctly for each field. If you have linked records in your Airtable fields, you must select which Table the link is for before saving your schema.

That’s it! You’re ready to use Airtable data in Bubble. If you’re having trouble with any aspect of the Airtable plugin, check out these FAQs before filing a support ticket:

What are these special fields types for the field dropdowns in the schema popup?

The field type dropdowns in the initialization popup have four special data types unique to Airtable: Attachment, Collaborator, Barcode, and Link to Record(s). This is for ease of use, to make it easier for you to map your Airtable columns to Bubble types. In practice, Attachment fields can be used like a list of images or files. Barcodes can be used like text. Since Collaborators and Links are native to Airtable, these fields must be pulled directly from Airtable when using a Table as data or creating/modifying records.

Why aren’t my other tables showing up in the “Select a Table” dropdown in the schema popup?

In order to select a Table in this dropdown, you must first add it to your Base in the Plugins tab. You don’t need to initialize it yet, but it must be added.

Why can’t I filter on all of my fields?

The filtering mechanism is done in the request we send to Airtable, so we have done as much as we can using the current API.

Why can’t I create or modify all of my fields?

Some fields in Airtable are generated by other fields, such as Rollups or Counts. Therefore, these cannot be altered or created via API calls.

Why aren’t all of my tables showing up in Airtable actions or when I search data from an external API?

Make sure your permissions are set accordingly. To use a Table in the Create and Modify actions, you must give it Create & Modify permissions. The same stands for the Delete action.

How do I create or modify special Airtable fields, such as attachments, linked records, collaborators, and barcodes?

You can use files or images in Bubble to create or modify Attachment fields in Airtable, and you can use text to create or modify barcodes. For linked records and collaborators, you must pull this directly from Airtable. For example, if you want to create a new record with a collaborator field, you would have to have that collaborator on another record already and pull from that.